Open access to official statistics on the economic, social and environmental condition of a country and its population is an essential element of a democracy. The ABSattaches considerable importance to easy and widespread access by all levels of government, and the community generally, to the statistics it compiles.

This revision of the ABS Pricing Policy has been prompted by the requirement for alignment with new Australian Government Cost Recovery Guidelines (Guidelines). The draft revision also reflects the recent move by ABS to make the content of its website accessible free-of-charge via the Internet. The ABS’ proposed changes to the pricing policy can be viewed in HTMLor byopening the PDF file available for download on the "Details" tab of this product.

Public consultation

Upon completion of reading the ‘’ABS Pricing Policy Review Outcomes - Public Consultation Paper” should you wish to make any comment on the ABS proposals in this paper, please e-mail your comments to the Director, Client Services, paul.sewell@abs.gov.au . The may find the following questions useful when framing your comments.

Are there ABS products and services that you use that are not explained in the policy?

Do you agree that the ABS has correctly applied the government’s Cost Recovery Guidelines?